Linda Bloodworth-Thomason
Encyclopedia
Linda Bloodworth-Thomason (born Linda Joyce Bloodworth on April 15, 1947, in Poplar Bluff, Missouri
) is an American
writer
and television producer.
Bloodworth-Thomason is best known for creating, writing, and producing several television series, most successfully with the series Designing Women
. She and her husband, Harry Thomason
, were also notable for their friendship with former President
Bill Clinton
and his family.
degree in English from the University of Missouri
in Columbia, Missouri
. She moved to Los Angeles, California
, in the early 1970s, where she taught English at Jordan High School, in the Watts
neighborhood.
in advertising. She then became a reporter for the Los Angeles Daily Journal. During this period, she also began working as a freelance writer in television.
Her early script-writing work included five episodes of M*A*S*H* — of which one episode, "Hot Lips and Empty Arms," written with Mary Kay Place
, was nominated for an Emmy Award
— as well as scripts for Rhoda
, the television version of Paper Moon
, and the original pilot for One Day at a Time
. She also wrote scripts for a short-lived sitcom, Filthy Rich
.
in 1980 and married him in July, 1983. That same year, the pair created Mozark Productions, named for their respective home states: Missouri, or "MO," and Arkansas, with an allusion to the overlapping Ozarks region as well.
The company produced several situation comedies
, most notably the show Designing Women
, which reunited Bloodworth-Thomason with Filthy Rich cast members Dixie Carter
and Delta Burke
. The company also created and produced Evening Shade
, Hearts Afire
, Women of the House
(a short-lived Designing Women spinoff starring Burke), and Emeril (a short-lived sitcom featuring chef Emeril Lagasse
).
. The couple created several short-subject political promotional films for Clinton and for other candidates, such as General Wesley Clark
's presidential bid and Hillary Clinton's run for the United States Senate
.
The most famous of these pieces was The Man from Hope, which introduced Clinton at the 1992 Democratic Convention
. The Thomasons also consulted on other aspects of Clinton's presentation, including his arrival at the convention by walking the considerable distance from the basement of Macy's
in Manhattan
to the convention site at Madison Square Garden
.
Bloodworth-Thomason went on to write her first novel, Liberating Paris, which was released in 2004. Variety
reported in March 2005 that the Thomasons were working on a screen adaptation of the novel, with actors Michelle Pfeiffer
, Billy Bob Thornton
, and Dwight Yoakam
committed to the film despite there being no completed script. It was one of two film projects that the Thomasons were to produce with Jeff Sagansky, the other being a Bloodworth-Thomason script called Southern Comfort
and based on a documentary by filmmaker Kate Davis.
A new series, 12 Miles of Bad Road
, was slated to debut on HBO. The show starred Gary Cole
and Lily Tomlin
. While many of Bloodworth-Thomason's projects focus on exploring and exposing stereotypes of Southerners
, her early concept for the new show was expressed as "It looks at the life of a Chevy dealership-owning hick family the way that The Sopranos
looks at the mob". After six episodes of a proposed ten-episode run were shot, the show was dumped by HBO before being broadcast and is currently in limbo.
Bloodworth-Thomason founded The Claudia Foundation in Poplar Bluff, Missouri
, in the Bloodworth House. The organization supports young people, particularly young women, with scholarships and with opportunities for community services and positions in the arts industry.
Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Poplar Bluff is a city in Butler County located in Southeast Missouri in the United States. It is the county seat of Butler County and is known as "The Gateway to the Ozarks" among other names. As of the 2000 U.S...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and television producer.
Bloodworth-Thomason is best known for creating, writing, and producing several television series, most successfully with the series Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
. She and her husband, Harry Thomason
Harry Thomason
Harry Z. Thomason, , is an American film and television producer and director, best known for the television series Designing Women. Thomason and his wife, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, are close friends of President Bill Clinton and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and played a major...
, were also notable for their friendship with former President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and his family.
Early life
Bloodworth-Thomason grew up in Missouri and graduated from Poplar Bluff High School. Linda and friends were the founders of the Alpha Pi Phi sorority. She went on to obtain a Bachelor of ArtsBachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in English from the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
in Columbia, Missouri
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
. She moved to Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, in the early 1970s, where she taught English at Jordan High School, in the Watts
Watts, Los Angeles, California
Watts is a mostly residential neighborhood in South Los Angeles, California.-History:The area now known as Watts is located on the Rancho La Tajauta Mexican land grant...
neighborhood.
Early career
After her teaching stint concluded, Bloodworth went on to work for The Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
in advertising. She then became a reporter for the Los Angeles Daily Journal. During this period, she also began working as a freelance writer in television.
Her early script-writing work included five episodes of M*A*S*H* — of which one episode, "Hot Lips and Empty Arms," written with Mary Kay Place
Mary Kay Place
Mary Kay Place is an American actress, singer, director and screen writer. She is best known as portraying Loretta Haggers on the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, a role which won her a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series in 1977...
, was nominated for an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
— as well as scripts for Rhoda
Rhoda
Rhoda is an American television sitcom, starring Valerie Harper, which ran for five seasons, from 1974 to 1978 airing in 109 episodes. The show was a spin-off from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which Harper between the years 1970 and 1974 had played the role of Rhoda Morgenstern, a spunky,...
, the television version of Paper Moon
Paper Moon (film)
Paper Moon is a 1973 American comedy film directed by Peter Bogdanovich and released by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was adapted from the novel Addie Pray by Joe David Brown, and the film was shot in black-and-white. The film is set during the Great Depression in the U.S. states of Kansas and...
, and the original pilot for One Day at a Time
One Day at a Time
One Day at a Time is an American situation comedy on the CBS network that aired from December 16, 1975 until May 28, 1984. It portrays Ann Romano, a divorced mother, played by Bonnie Franklin, her two teenage daughters Julie and Barbara Cooper and Schneider, their building superintendent .The show...
. She also wrote scripts for a short-lived sitcom, Filthy Rich
Filthy Rich (1982 TV series)
Filthy Rich is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from August 1982 to July 1983. Starring Dixie Carter and Delta Burke, the series satirized prime-time soap operas such as Dallas and Dynasty.-Plot:...
.
Creating and producing
Bloodworth met Harry ThomasonHarry Thomason
Harry Z. Thomason, , is an American film and television producer and director, best known for the television series Designing Women. Thomason and his wife, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, are close friends of President Bill Clinton and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and played a major...
in 1980 and married him in July, 1983. That same year, the pair created Mozark Productions, named for their respective home states: Missouri, or "MO," and Arkansas, with an allusion to the overlapping Ozarks region as well.
The company produced several situation comedies
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
, most notably the show Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
, which reunited Bloodworth-Thomason with Filthy Rich cast members Dixie Carter
Dixie Carter
Dixie Virginia Carter was an American film, television and stage actress, best known for her role as Julia Sugarbaker in the CBS sitcom Designing Women...
and Delta Burke
Delta Burke
Delta Ramona Leah Burke is an American television and film actress. Her television work includes a leading role as Suzanne Sugarbaker in the CBS sitcom Designing Women...
. The company also created and produced Evening Shade
Evening Shade
Evening Shade was an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from 1990 to 1994. The series starred Burt Reynolds as Wood Newton, an ex-professional football player for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who returns to rural Evening Shade, Arkansas to coach a high school football team with a long...
, Hearts Afire
Hearts Afire
Hearts Afire is a sitcom that aired from September 14, 1992 to February 1, 1995 on CBS. It starred John Ritter and Markie Post, with Post portraying a journalist and Ritter playing a senator's aide....
, Women of the House
Women of the House
Women of the House is an American situation comedy television series. It is a spin-off of Designing Women and stars Delta Burke, who had reconciled with producers after a bitter, highly publicized, off-screen battle.- Premise :...
(a short-lived Designing Women spinoff starring Burke), and Emeril (a short-lived sitcom featuring chef Emeril Lagasse
Emeril Lagasse
'Emeril John Lagasse is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality, and cookbook author. A regional James Beard Award winner, he is perhaps most notable for his Food Network shows Emeril Live and Essence of Emeril as well as catchphrases such as “Kick it up a notch!” and...
).
Friendship with the Clintons
The Thomasons' friendship with the Clintons dates to Bill Clinton's days as governor of ArkansasArkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
. The couple created several short-subject political promotional films for Clinton and for other candidates, such as General Wesley Clark
Wesley Clark
Wesley Kanne Clark, Sr., is a retired general of the United States Army. Graduating as valedictorian of the class of 1966 at West Point, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he obtained a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and later graduated from the...
's presidential bid and Hillary Clinton's run for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
.
The most famous of these pieces was The Man from Hope, which introduced Clinton at the 1992 Democratic Convention
1992 Democratic National Convention
The 1992 National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party nominated Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas for President and Senator Al Gore of Tennessee for Vice President; Clinton announced Gore as his running-mate on July 9, 1992. The convention was held at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New...
. The Thomasons also consulted on other aspects of Clinton's presentation, including his arrival at the convention by walking the considerable distance from the basement of Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
to the convention site at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
.
Other accomplishments
In 1994, she was awarded the Women in Film Lucy Award in recognition of her excellence and innovation in her creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television.Bloodworth-Thomason went on to write her first novel, Liberating Paris, which was released in 2004. Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
reported in March 2005 that the Thomasons were working on a screen adaptation of the novel, with actors Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Marie Pfeiffer is an American actress. She made her film debut in 1980 in The Hollywood Knights, but first garnered mainstream attention with her performance in Brian De Palma's Scarface . Pfeiffer has won numerous awards for her work...
, Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
, and Dwight Yoakam
Dwight Yoakam
Dwight David Yoakam is an American singer-songwriter, actor and film director, most famous for his pioneering country music...
committed to the film despite there being no completed script. It was one of two film projects that the Thomasons were to produce with Jeff Sagansky, the other being a Bloodworth-Thomason script called Southern Comfort
Southern Comfort
Southern Comfort is an American liqueur made from neutral spirits with fruit, spice and whiskey flavourings. The brand was originally created by bartender Martin Wilkes Heron in New Orleans in 1874, and is now owned by the Brown-Forman Corporation...
and based on a documentary by filmmaker Kate Davis.
A new series, 12 Miles of Bad Road
12 Miles of Bad Road
12 Miles of Bad Road is a television show originally created for HBO centered on a Texas matriarch who must reconcile her booming real estate business and immense wealth with the day-to-day struggles of her dysfunctional family life.-Cast:...
, was slated to debut on HBO. The show starred Gary Cole
Gary Cole
Gary Michael Cole is an American actor. Cole is known for his supporting roles in numerous film and television productions since the 1990s.-Early life:...
and Lily Tomlin
Lily Tomlin
Mary Jean "Lily" Tomlin is an American actress, comedienne, writer, and producer. Tomlin has been a major force in American comedy since the late 1960's when she began a career as a stand up comedian and became a featured performer on television's Laugh-in...
. While many of Bloodworth-Thomason's projects focus on exploring and exposing stereotypes of Southerners
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
, her early concept for the new show was expressed as "It looks at the life of a Chevy dealership-owning hick family the way that The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...
looks at the mob". After six episodes of a proposed ten-episode run were shot, the show was dumped by HBO before being broadcast and is currently in limbo.
Bloodworth-Thomason founded The Claudia Foundation in Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Poplar Bluff is a city in Butler County located in Southeast Missouri in the United States. It is the county seat of Butler County and is known as "The Gateway to the Ozarks" among other names. As of the 2000 U.S...
, in the Bloodworth House. The organization supports young people, particularly young women, with scholarships and with opportunities for community services and positions in the arts industry.